I am having so much fun with this story, honestly. It's so much fun to write! And on a random note, am I the only one who, no matter what the situation, always envisions Severus speaking without contractions? "You are," not "You're". It's just something I use in my characterization of the man, but still. Here's a new chapter for you all, don't hate me for the cliffy! And I've decided to rotate towards a Monday/Wednesday/Friday posting schedule, so there will be solid dates for new chapters! Enjoy, guys, and if you see fit to review, I would adore that!

"Are you positive you know where this owlery is?" Hermione asked dubiously as they turned down yet another dead end street.

Severus growled in response. "I am. It is around here somewhere, and the muggle protections are stronger due to the large amount of owls fluttering around. We will find it," he added firmly, striding off in a different direction.

Hermione huffed irritably, but followed him regardless. They had spent their morning in a mostly comfortable silence, in the sitting room of course. Severus had taken a seat on the couch, and Hermione had stood there, slightly sheepish, wondering where she should sit. Turning towards the chair, she had decided against it quickly.

She had sat down next to Severus before giving herself time to think about whether or not he would be okay with it. When he did not protest, she had snuggled slightly against him, and started to read. Neither said anything about the new position, and Hermione was more than satisfied with it. Unless Severus said something, he usually did not mind it, and that was more than good enough for Hermione.

A strange warmth had spread over her as she sat next to Severus, and Hermione couldn't pinpoint exactly what it meant, or where it came from, but it was pleasant enough. They had remained in that position for a couple hours before Hermione had stood up suddenly, and exclaimed that she had yet to buy her owl.

Severus had rolled his eyes, and begrudging offered his assistance in finding the Owlery. So, consequently, here they were. Hermione trailed behind Severus, waiting for him to figure out exactly where he was going. "Er, Severus, any idea now?"

Severus turned around and shot Hermione a glared. "Perhaps," he said silky as he took a step to stand in front of her, "you should remain quiet, and give me time to actually hear myself think."

Hermione looked up at him and scowled. "I'm not even talking that much, you damned wizard! I'm only wondering where we are going, and believe me if I had any idea–"

Severus cut her off mid-sentence by crashing his lips down upon hers. Hermione's words were lost quickly, the feel of Severus's soft lips moving against hers rendering her almost instantly incoherent.

Severus drew back with a slight smirk, and turned without a word towards a dilapidated looking building, and tapped his wand three times on the side of it. The building instantly transformed into a rather exotic looking building, and the screeches of hundreds of birds could now be heard. "Here we go."

Hermione gaped at him. "Did you know where it was all along?"

Severus arched an eyebrow, but his lip twitched nonetheless. "I don't think you quite understand how gleefully entertaining it is to watch you get annoyed. Your hair crackles in the most amusing way."

Hermione glared at him, and attempted to smack him, but he smoothly side-stepped it, and bowed, gesturing in the direction of the door. Hermione huffed dramatically, and entered, her annoyance instantly gone at the sight inside. There were cages piled to the ceiling, and owls flitted back and forth from the various perches across the high ceiling. "I don't know exactly if I'll be able to find the right owl in all these...owls," Hermione said with a small laugh.

Severus rolled his eyes and walked up to the old man behind the counter. "We need a bird."

The man eyed him. "I've been trying to sell you a bird for years, Snape, what's changed, eh?"

Severus gestured to Hermione, and she walked up. "Granger needs a bird, not I. Can you explain to her how to choose it, Haldorf?"

The older man nodded, and turned to look at Hermione appraisingly. Hermione grew slightly uncomfortable under his piercing gaze, but she didn't look away.

Haldorf finally nodded decisively, and started to speak. "You stand in the middle of the room, and think about exactly what makes you, you. When you're finished, and you know who you are, you whistle like so," the old man demonstrated a piercing whistle, and Hermione try it out. When she had completed it, he nodded and continued. "You wait. When a bird decides they like you, they'll fly down to you. It's an ancient sort of magic that comes with buying a bird, and don't expect exactly what you want to come zooming down at you. It may not be what you're hoping for."

Hermione nodded slowly, hiding her puzzlement. Shooting a glance at Severus, she walked to the middle of the room, and took a deep breath. Quickly, she ran through everything her friends said about her. Smart, pushy, shy at some times, sarcastic, Hermione frowned. The list sort of went on, and on, and on.

Huffing slightly she rolled her shoulders, and cleared her mind of anything and everything. Once she was done, she tentatively prodded the empty space, and called out in her mind for what she was. Eventually, a confident looking woman walked slowly up in the swirling blankness of space. The woman looked vaguely like Hermione, and she winked conspiratorially at Hermione. She walked off, and in the womans place, and bouncing silver otter appeared.

Hermione gasped as she eyed the otter, how it bounced in and out of the swirling white nothingness in her mind. Looking at it carefully, Hermione breathed in sharply. She wasn't what her friends said she was, or even what she wanted to think she was. She was purely Hermione Jean Granger; all that the name and existence of her being encompasses, and that was all.

Once she realized that simple fact, a shudder ran through her body, and she let out a piercing whistle. Opening her eyes, Hermione looked around expectantly. Nothing happened at first, and Hermione turned to look at Severus, worry etched on her face.

Severus raised his eyes to the heavens and turned away from Hermione pointedly. Exasperated, Hermione looked at the ground, and decided to focus on her new found revelation. She was Hermione, not what anyone else thought of her, or even what she thought of herself, she was who she was, and it was a brilliant thought.

Suddenly, Hermione felt two sets of claws digging into her shoulder, and she turned to look at who had decided to fly down. She gasped at what she saw.

Perched on her shoulder, and eying her curiously, was a beautiful bird with golden plumage. Its eyes were a fiery orange, and burned with a brightness Hermione had only seen once before, in Dumbledore's phoenix, Fawkes.

The bird was small, about the size of a medium sized owl. Its tail end had a long stream of silky red and gold feathers, and it had a long, elegant beak; much like that of an eagle.

Turning in surprise, she walked carefully up to Haldorf, the golden bird still perched on her shoulder. Haldorf eyed her curiously. "Interesting," he mused.

Hermione looked at Severus, and then back at Haldorf. "This isn't an owl," she began hesitantly. "Do you know what sort of bird this is?"

Haldorf nodded. "Her father was a phoenix. Her mother was a golden eagle. Birds like her are very rare, and she has been here for a few years, never flying down to anyone, never even accepting food from my hand," he stated, the curious look still on her face. "Phoenixes are strange creatures, everything they do seems to have a purpose, and it seems as though she has chosen you."

Hermione offered her hand to the bird, and it flapped its wings once, hopping lightly onto Hermione's curled up fist. "Why did you choose me?" Hermione asked softly, looking straight in the birds eye.

The bird cocked its head, and let out a single, beautiful note that resounded along the walls of the owlery. Hermione smiled. "How much?" She asked as she turned back towards Haldorf.

Haldorf rubbed his chin appraisingly. "Give her a name, and I'll decide after that."

Severus watched Hermione look at the bird, and felt slightly awed. Hermione had attracted the spawn of phoenix, which meant that something inside her was so powerful, that the half-phoenix felt attracted to her. It was a well known fact that phoenixes only chose wizards of hidden values to be with, but a half-phoenix was almost unheard of, and Severus didn't exactly know if that changed the rules.

Hermione looked at the bird, and raised a hand tentatively, stroking the birds brilliantly gold plumage. "Aurelia," she whispered softly, letting the name slide off her tongue. The bird flapped its wings, and let out a three-note trill, the crystal clear notes reverberating through Hermione's mind.

Hermione turned towards Haldorf again. "Aurelia is her name," she stated firmly.

Haldorf nodded appreciatively. "It is a very fitting name. 50 galleons."

Hermione winced slightly at the price, but paid it regardless. Bidding Haldorf a good bye, Hermione walked out with Severus, Aurelia perched on her shoulder.

Severus looked down at her, and offered his arm. Hermione whispered a few words to Aurelia, and the bird took off to the skies. Watching her fly off, Hermione nodded, and they disappeared with a loud CRACK.

Appearing on Severus's front doorstep, they walked in and Hermione opened the window in the sitting room for Aurelia to fly in.

"Well, that was certainly an interesting experience," Severus stated as he sat down in his armchair.

Hermione nodded dazedly, and flopped down on the couch. "I honestly had no idea you had to do that to buy an owl."

Severus snorted derisively. "You don't. If you are just wishing to buy an owl for the purpose of using it, you simply walk in and Haldorf gives you one he thinks will suit your needs best. Haldorf, however, is well trained in the skill of spotting someone in need of a familiar. Your orange cat died some time ago, did he not?"

Hermione looked at Severus sharply. "Yeah, Crookshanks died a few months after the war. How did you know?"

Severus shrugged. "I didn't, until we entered the Owlery. I figured the cat must have left you in someway, once Haldorf told you how to attract a familiar."

Hermione grinned sheepishly. She had been effectively set up by a strange old man, but somehow, she wasn't upset. When she had spoken Aurelia's name aloud, it had felt so right in many ways, that Hermione couldn't have imagined not walking into that store on that particular day, and finding the golden bird.

At that moment, the regal looking bird flew in, landing lightly on the back of that couch that Hermione occupied. Whistling a note, Aurelia hopped into Hermione's chest, and nuzzled its head under her chin once, before flying off to, presumably, explore its new home.

Hermione watched the bird fly off, and turned to Severus, smiling brightly. "What would you like to do for the rest of our day off?"

Severus looked at the book he had picked up evenly. "You should not ask me to dictate the rest of our evening, Miss Granger," he purred.

Hermione felt a blush creep over her cheeks at the hidden threat his words held. "I think, actually, that might be the best option, because I certainly don't know what to do, and you seem to have a pretty good–"

Hermione was cut off by Severus pinning her to the couch, her hands above her head, and her thighs secured between his. Breathless, she looked up at him and grinned sheepishly.

"You talk too much, witch," Severus purred, leaning down close to her ear and softly biting the lobe. "There is only one condition to whatever this is."

Hermione frowned slightly. Condition? "What sort of condition?"

"While I am many things, generous is not one of them, and it is a rare occurrence when I wish to share anything I see as mine," he said silkily, his mellifluous voice making her melt slowly from the inside out. "Until you no longer wish it, as long as you decide to warm my bed, you shall not do the same to another man."

Hermione looked at the serious expression on Severus's face, and burst out laughing. "I would have never pegged you as possessive, Severus," she said sarcastically.

Severus growled softly, and leaned down to nip at her neck. "Do you agree?"

"Even if you weren't Severus Snape, I wouldn't be with more than one guy at a time. I'm honestly not like that."

"I never said you were, I was merely making my intentions clear," Severus said softly, looking at Hermione intently.

Hermione grinned. "Understood, professor," she said as she lifted her head to softly kiss the side of his mouth.

Severus looked down at the witch appreciatively, and bent down to return the kiss, but was interrupted but the sound of harsh knocking on the door. Hermione sat up as Severus released her wrists. "Who would be knocking on your door?"

Severus stood and quickly stooped to retrieve his wand. "I do not know. I do not keep in contact with many people, and none of them would have the audacity to arrive at my home without notice."

Hermione trailed behind Severus, hovering in the doorway to the sitting room, curiously watching as Severus opened the door, his wand grasped firmly in his hand. Severus stepped back from the door, a scowl on his face. Biting back the curse he was itching to cast, he quickly glanced back at Hermione, and she stepped forward, wondering who was there.

Pulling her wand surreptitiously from her pocket, she swung the door open wider. Staring in shock at the person in the doorway, she took a step back. "Ronald?"

On an unrelated note, I would ask everyone to send their prayers and condolences towards those affecting by the terrible shooting that occurred in CT early this morning. Thank you.